Ulrike Kronfeld-Goharani

We will investigate how sustainability can be conceptualized regarding the great uncertainty of ocean change. In particular, questions of interest will be: How can it be achieved to increase public and cultural awareness of ocean affairs so that sustainable norms and rules are more accepted? How and when have sustainability approaches been applied to ocean affairs? Which international conventions for marine nature conservation have been taken into account the sustainability principle and which institutions are involved in implementing it? What role does the Commission on Sustainability play in regard of maritime affairs? Who else is concerned with sustainability in the maritime context? What does the process of sustainability mean for institutionalization and how can national and subnational capacities be implemented and enforced? To answer these questions, the study will be divided into two sequential parts. The first part will consist in a statistical analysis of usage and connotations of the empty signifier “sustainability”, followed by qualitative analysis in the second part.